What is the edible dormouse?
Q: What is the edible dormouse?
A: The edible dormouse is a small species of dormouse and the only species in the genus Glis. It is also known as the fat dormouse, and it is one of the largest dormice in Europe.
Q: How did ancient Romans use them?
A: The ancient Romans used to breed them to be eaten, usually as a snack, which is why it has "edible" in its name.
Q: Where are wild edible dormice still eaten today?
A: Wild edible dormice are still eaten in Slovenia, and trapping them for food and fur is a Slovenian tradition.
Q: Who introduced this animal to England?
A: This animal was accidentally introduced to England after some escaped from Lionel Walter Rothschild's private collection in 1902.
Q: How many British edible dormice exist today?
A: There are approximately 10,000 British edible dormice living within a 200-square-mile (520 km2) triangle between Beaconsfield, Aylesbury and Luton.
Q: Is this animal seen as a pest by some people?
A: Yes, this animal is seen as a pest by some people. In the United Kingdom there are laws that do not allow certain ways of killing them, and removing them from an area may require a license.
Q: Why would poor peasants eat these during winter?
A: Poor peasants would eat these during winter because they provide good protein sources when food was scarce or hard to come by.
